I Met an Inventor at Barnes & Noble's Bookstore

[Troy 1,664]

When in Florida, I spend hours in Barnes and Noble and Starbucks working on AALBC.com.  Sometimes I use the library, but I like being able to buy a cup of coffee and something to eat without having to pack up and leave..

Plus, I can people watch in B&N and Starbucks.  People are so interesting, but before I digress let me tell you about a Brother I've become friendly with over the last couple of years, Milton Bertrand.

We started talking because I noticed he was sitting in the B&N at a wooden desk--that he brought into the store himself--which initially seemed crazy--who brings a desk to a bookstore?!.  We started talking and he explained how his desk actually folded up into his backpack. I thought that was such a cool idea since tables can fill up during busy times in the store.  

I filmed him on my cell phone but never edited the video (just never got to it).  Late last year, I ran into him again and this time he had an upgraded model of the desk.  It was no longer made out of wood, but plastic and a light-weight metal.  The desk can also be converted into an easel with the desktop doubling as a whiteboard-like writing surface.

So I filmed him again and this time I even started to edit the video, but one thing led to another and I never finished editing it. Yesterday I saw him again and told him I'll get to his video, but I was saying to myself I must sound like I'm full crap.  So while he never asked for a video, I'd been promising to create one, for the better part of a year, but never did it.  So I decided to finish it today.

Hopefully, it will inspire others to create. He told me he actually filled a large order for a school.

 

[Mel Hopkins 929]

The best!  I got quite a chuckle out of this invention.   I carry a lot of stuff in my bag - and my family members always ask "can you fit anything else in that bag?"  After watching this video, I thought  if they asked me again, I'd say "Why yes, here's my desk"

[Pioneer1 636]

Troy

Great minds think alike.

I used to LOVE hanging out at Barnes and Noble as well as Border's Books (before they closed) to work on plans, have meetings with people, and just sit down and read or have a conversation with people.
And like you, I liked being able to eat and drink...something you CAN'T do in most libraries.
Plus, in the Detroit most of the libraries were full of either loud kids or homeless people looking for a place to warm up.

They're starting to close most of the Barnes and Nobles now so my thing is Starbucks and other more local coffee shops where I can sit down with my lap top and do my thang.

The only downside is you have to bring your own books....lol.
You look like a dinosaur today sitting there with a book in your hand reading while everyone is reading off of tablets and lap tops but there's something about laying back (if you happen to be in a Starbucks that has a couch) holidng a book in one hand and keeping the other free from some coffee that's not only relaxing but therapudic.

[Troy 1,664]

Hey Mel, yeah I thought the idea was cute.  I think it would bee even more practical in NYC where apartments are so small.  

Pioneer.  I agree.  The library's other weakness is their hours; they open late and close earlier compared to B&N or Starbucks.  

The Starbucks I frequent is walking distance from my place and is only closed 5 hours a day.  Google provides their wifi and they even provide table outside with outlets but this is in Florida.  I do buy something it I used B&N or starbucks.  I would hate to see either go away.

In Harlem, the Starbucks are awful places to work-too small and crowded.  But Harlem also has a bunch of cafes now.  It is not unusual to see every available seat used by someone with a laptop--I can't see how any of these cafes make any money with people camped out for hours for the price of a cup of coffee...\

Cafes used to me places for socialization now they are over run by people whose heads are buried in the computers.

My friend Milton has moved to CA, I'll miss running into him.

 

[Pioneer1 636]

My friend Milton has moved to CA, I'll miss running into him.

Maybe that's why he moved to Cali.
Trying to get away from you.....lol.


When I first moved to this small town on the Westcoast there was a Starbucks I used to go to everyday just to sit down and read, meet people (especially women), and just chill.
After a couple days I met this young Asian dude and we talked for 4 hours about politics, religion, race.....we really got along and jived.
And he wasn't gay....lol....we just really vibed with eachother as men.

Then I saw him the next day....and we talked....ok.
Then the day after that....he's waiting on me....and we talked.
Even on Sundays.....he'd come in just to sit down and talk.

I mean, this cat would talk to me as long as I stayed there even if it were all day.
He was young and I tried to point him at women...he'd glance at them but continue on whatever subject we were talking about.
Asian women would come up TO HIM and give him the eye and he'd smile but keep on talking to me.
If I saw him on the street he'd link up with me just to hang out and talk!
I knew the dude wasn't gay because he constantly talked about going to Korea or China to find a bride......but still.
Gay or not, you don't need to be around another dude for THAT DAMN LONG...lol.

It was like he didn't have that social gauge that tells you when it's time to shut up and leave nor was he good at reading body language.

I started to leave the city just to get away from him because the town was small and it only had one Starbucks, but finally he got some sort of job that took up his time and I only saw him every once in a while....lol.
We still kept in touch for a few years after I left town because I actually did like talking to the dude....but only for a reasonable amount of time.

Even when I'd talk to him on the phone he'd talk to me until his battery gave out or his minutes expired; then he'd run down to the 7-11 and buy more minutes just to come back and talk MORE shit....lol.

All jokes aside, obviously my story doesn't equate to Troy's about my manz down in Florida....but reading it just brought back memories....lol.
 

[Troy 1,664]

That is kinda weird; dudes typically don't chat each other up like that.  Did you two ladies go out on dates too?  You mentioned the word "Gay" three times (The lady doth protest too much, methinks). 

 

[Delano 697]

Gay men do get married. He onlyhad eyes for you. 

 

Really cool invention. 

[Pioneer1 636]

Troy

Come on man, you know "white Freudian psychology" don't apply to brothers.....lol.

From what I've observed....
If a White dude is always ranting and raving about homosexuality, chances are he IS a homosexual.
If a Black man is doing it, he may have his reasons but being gay usually ain't one of them...lol.

But at any rate......
I wasn't trying to bust on the gays or demonize them, just pointing out how fond he seemed to be of my company even though I didn't dectect any "sweetness" about him what so ever.
This was the WestCoast and there were plenty of openly gay men frequenting that Starbucks but I never saw him talking to them....or any other man....or any woman!

From the time I saw him and the years I was there, besides myself I can count on ONE HAND the number of people I've seen him really interact with on a social level.

Your asking did we go out on a date reminded me of something else that was funny NOW but was very akward at the time.....

I started kicking it with a young lady out there and I would bring HER to the Starbucks from time to time.
He knew I often came there to meet women so if he happened to see me with a female he'd back off or sit in a corner somewhere and if by some chance the woman happened to leave before I did he'd catch me by myself and start running his mouth.
For some reason....I'm still not sure why.....I told him it was OK to sit with us when he saw us because I "had her" already so he wouldn't be considered in the way....lol.

What did I have to do THAT for???

Dude would come and just sit and watch us talk and after about a minute of silence....he'd talk ONLY TO ME!
If she'd ask him a question, he'd answer casually.....but then got quiet again.
No type of conversation with her what so ever.....lol....damn.
She was a nice girl so for a few encounters she'd TRY to converse with him but he'd turn so red and funny faced that she'd get freaked out and leave him alone.

((shakes head))

This happened for nearly 2 weeks to the point that she insisted that we no longer go to that Starbucks because of that "creepy guy".

I guess I didn't consider him creepy and liked talking to him because he was one of the few Asians who's willing to talk openly about race and politics with a Black man and he'd go all in about how Asians saw Black people and what his parents said ect...




Delano

It's true that some gay men do get married, but still.........

You can kind of tell if a person (straight female or gay male) has some "feelings" for you, even if they don't say it.
It's almost intuitive.

Homeboy wasn't on me like that, he genuinely just liked to talk talk and talk some more.

Now he may have been A-SEXUAL.
I've met quite a few people who fit into that category where they didn't like either sex.

[Cynique 1,856]

Well, in today's vernacular 2 guys who really like hanging with each other are said to be involved in a "bromance".   Guys can like, admire and subsequently get same sex crushes on another guy who they've become fond of. That's the reason there is something known as boy's night out, because men enjoy each others company in a jovial atmosphere of camaraderie 

When i was 14 years old i went off to an  interracial summer camp and almost all the girls there would gravitate to a favorite female counselor and develop a crush on her.  i never did because the counselors all got  on my nerves and i was glad when the 2 weeks was up.  A couple of black girls did immerse themselves  in this summer camp culture, but most of us black ones found other amusements like teaching each other how to smoke.  

[Pioneer1 636]

I'm not gonna lie.....
There have been MANY men that I've enjoyed the company of and loved talking to.  If they were in the neighborhood or in town they were/are always welcomed by my home to sit down and chop it up.

Some people you just like and vibe with.
I don't know if I'd call it a "bromance" though.....lol.
There is nothing sexual or even sensual about it.
There are women I like talking to the same way, some are rather unattractive from a sexual point of view but I still love talking to them and consider them really good friends.

With both the males and unattractive females I liked talking to....and could talk to them for hours upon hours...if for some silly reason they decided to get up and sit closer to me or put their hand on my knee and start staring me in the eyes I'm pretty sure my reaction will be quite physical and probably violent, lol.

Even with homeboy, as much as he "jocked" me I didn't feel the slightest bit of gayness or sexual desire coming from him, it was all intellectual.

I think it goes back to intuition and just "knowing" what people are about.
And the older you get the sharper that skill gets.



You talk about girls having crushes on the counselors.......
Most of the White women I've really gotten to know pretty well tell me that they've experimented with kissing and smooching other girls when they were young.
You talk about smoking and one of the games I've heard several different White women repeat was some sort of kissing game where they'd blow smoke into eachother's mouths.
But I haven't met any Black girls who said this.
Not saying it doesn't happen, but they didn't admit it to me....even during conversations about homosexuality.

Many Black psychologist have asserted that homosexuality is part of the White psyche and that most Whites are homosexual atleast on some level.

I found that hard to believe at first but the older I get and the more I observe society and here stories, the more seriously I begin to take that assertion.

[Delano 697]

That guy was in Love with you. And you got blond sided because he didn't display any of rhe items on your check list.  But your girl knew what was up. 

[Troy 1,664]

In all seriousness, Del pretty much nailed it Pioneer.   You need to refine your check list.  You simply encountered a new type of dude--that is new to you--who did not meet your criteria of Gay. Human sexuality is very complex.and extends beyond your personal observations.

This interesting thing is that the encounter with that guy did not seem to change your worldview.  Perhaps this conversation will.

[Pioneer1 636]

Lol.....perhaps.

Maybe there was a "spiritual love connection" that I was unaware of.

 

[Delano 697]

The reason I say that is that Gay Men Lesbians and straight people. Seemed to have a confusion about my sexual orientation.

 

Troy I doubt it, the evidence isn't impelling enough. Pioneer if it wasn't for the Girl you would be Bi.

[Pioneer1 636]

Del

The reason I say that is that Gay Men Lesbians and straight people. Seemed to have a confusion about my sexual orientation.

Gays, lesbians, and straights.....?
That sounds like EVERYBODY has trouble trying to figure you out.....lol.



Pioneer if it wasn't for the Girl you would be Bi.

Huh???

[Delano 697]

Not everyone. For some it is not an issue. Pus I didn't say All Gay Men, Lesbians and Straight people.

Pioneer that dude was working you, like girls work dudes. And you Still can't see it. The next one may be successful and turn you out.

[Pioneer1 636]

I was nearly 30 and this 23 year old Asian kid who was born in Korea and raised in a sheltered American suburb was "running game" on me?

I don't know about that one....lol.


So,you're saying that if it weren't for the young lady who didn't feel comfortable around him then he would have "turned" me bisexual?

Well first of all, I continued to talk to him for a couple years AFTER that incident with that particular woman....and still didn't get "turned out"...lol.

Further, I've talked to and befriended gays, bisexuals, lesbians, and even a drag queen over the years....and didn't get "turned out"....lol.

Come on man.



Secondly.....
You're assuming that a gay person can TURN someone else gay or that a person can TURN gay or bisexual in the first place.

Now I admit, I don't know for sure that it CAN'T happen.
But I'm more inclined to believe that if a man got "turned out" he was already gay or bisexual to begin with and someone just happened to be skilled enough to get him to express his true self.

I believe your sexuality is HARDWIRED and you're essentially born with it.

You can't "turn" bi or gay anymore than you can "turn" a retarded person into a genius.

That's not to say that a persons sexual orientation can't be influenced while they're still developing in their mother's womb.
Nor does it exclude the fact that through some sort of manipulation of the body's chemistry or the brain structure a person's sexual orientation can be changed.
However, I highly doubt that social interaction can change a person's sexual orientation.

For years the Black community would say:
"Oh...she was so abused by these no good men that she TURNED lesbian".
"Man, homeboy when to prison straight and got TURNED OUT and now he's gay as a rainbow!"

Come to talk to the people themselves and they said they ALWAYS felt that way, lol.
 

But sexuality aside..........

I do believe that you can have a spiritual or chemical bonding with a person of the same sex or opposite sex.
That's just human nature.
Some people you jive with.
You like talking to them and being around them, nothing really sexual about it.

But LIKE a sexual relationship.....sometimes the feeling is mutual and sometimes it's onesided.

With this particular dude, it was more one sided as he desired my company much more than I desired his.
But there are MEN who I consider close friends who we mutually respect and enjoy eachother's company and can kick it for hours.

[Delano 697]

If you form a deep mental or emotional than it is easier to be swayed into forging a physical one. More time means more opportunity. You must have been aware because you made it a point to let your friend know you like women. Maybe he wasn't gay but he till sounds like he was in love with you.

 

I think langauge is hard wired but sexuality is fluid even if the mind is not.

Some women will find out what their prospective love interest. A man chases a woman until she catches him. Think about it would you spend your last credit talking to a guy and not have eyes for anyone else. If you can't see that you may be hiding from your own impulses.

[Pioneer1 636]

Delano

If you form a deep mental or emotional than it is easier to be swayed into forging a physical one. More time means more opportunity. You must have been aware because you made it a point to let your friend know you like women. Maybe he wasn't gay but he till sounds like he was in love with you.

I already KNOW that when you form deep social bonds with some people they are more suceptible to fall in love with you!
Psychologists and therapists know this also and are trained to watch out for signs that thier clients may be falling in love with them so they can cut off the sessions if necessary.

But again, you're failing to take into account that they only fall in love with those of the same sex they are ALREADY attracted to!
They don't "turn" homosexual for someone they're having deep conversations with....lol.

I know "grooming" works, but again....it doesn't work on someone belonging to a sex you're not attracted to.



I think langauge is hard wired but sexuality is fluid even if the mind is not.

Some women will find out what their prospective love interest. A man chases a woman until she catches him. Think about it would you spend your last credit talking to a guy and not have eyes for anyone else. If you can't see that you may be hiding from your own impulses.

I'm not trying to insult you or take shots but seriously I think because YOUR sexuality may be fluid and because that's your reality you may be projecting it on others.

You've said repeatedly that homosexuals, bisexuals, and even straight people have questioned your sexuality which tells me that you're giving off signals either consciously or unconsciously.

I'm also saying because you claim to be a psychic.
...which you still have yet to prove....lol.
And when you study indigenous traditional customs (African and Native American) you find that many if not most of the shamans, psychics, and spiritual practicioners tended to be BISEXUAL (two spirited) so that they can relate to both males and females in the society more easily and help them.

Even today in this society, many of the psychic men have a gay or feminine quality about them and I believe this is so they can relate to both genders more easy.

But for most people, their sexuality isn't fluid but SET and well understood.
They aren't swayed by conversation, deep emotional bonds, ect.....that's just a scientific fact.

[Delano 697]

Pioneer there's a difference between other people being confused about my sexuality. And hanging with a guy that's in Love with you. Only you did that.

You are a literal thinker. Think beyond your world, or let's continue to have two monologues. 

[Troy 1,664]

Del to Pioneer's point why do you think so many different types of people confuse you with being gay?  Why are you so certain it was the confusion of many and not the confusion of one?

Sometimes people see things in us that we can't see in ourselves...but usually, the reality is that others are typically engaging in prejudice and sterotyping.

When folks stereotype they are using some characteristic they've observed.  For example, I meet someone on the web, and because they were exclusively publishing Black writers I assumed they had to be Black.

[Delano 697]

Because people are projecting on to me. Fir instance a set of twins were asked about my orientation. The Lesbian one thought i was gay. And the straight one thought i was straight 

[Delano 697]

They assume I am gay because of their check list. 

Gay men thought I was gay because I treated them like everyone else,  because they are. Plus I wasn't moving on women. Mostly I waited for them to make a move. 

I didn't chase women I walked. 

I had three lesbians try to pick me up as well. When I was hanging in Manhattan. 

There you go guys.

They assume I am gay because of their check list. 

Gay men thought I was gay because I treated them like everyone else,  because they are. Plus I wasn't moving on women. Mostly I waited for them to make a move. 

I didn't chase women I walked. 

I had three lesbians try to pick me up as well. Bu

[Delano 697]

I keep an open mind and keep judgement on abeyance. Because i like to think freely. And I am rigourous about checking  flaws in my thinking. 

Interestingly i said to the lesbian why are you talking to me you're a lesbian.That was an interesting period in my night-life. 

[Delano 697]

Pioneer you are the undisputed King of fuzzy logic. 

[Pioneer1 636]

Del

Well for one thing, you have to first prove that the dude was even GAY in the first place before you have him all "inlove" with me and trying to groom me with conversation....lol.

But since it seems rather "fuzzy" to you and I don't want to clutter up Troy's thread about this young man's invention anymore,  let me go over this sloooooowwwly......in another thread:

https://aalbc.com/tc/topic/4495-bisexuality-and-sexual-confusion-101/

[Delano 697]

Why not post the story in the new thread as well since that is what started the conversation. And it will give context to your statement. You said if some dude made a move on you it would end in violence. Why can't you just say you are not interested. And why couldn't you tell that guy you weren't interested. Sounds like the Fight or flight response. Which is the result of a perceived threat. Why do you feel threatened by homosexuality? Is cutting to close to the bone?